Contents

Joseph Sayers was born September 23, 1841 in Grenada, Mississippi to Dr. David Sayer and his wife Mary Thomas {Peete}. His mother died in 1851, and soon after he moved to Texas with his father and younger brother, William.[1] The family settled in Bastrop, where Sayers and his brother attended the Bastrop Military Institute.[2]

After the war ended, Sayers returned to Texas. He opened a school and simultaneously studied law. He was admitted to the bar and then formed a partnership with G. "Wash" Jones.[2]

Orline Walton

He married Orline Walton, an amateur painter. The walls of their apartments at the Riggs were adorned with beautiful specimens of her work. She painted portraits of herself and her husband, and has also made copies of several of the celebrated pictures at the Corcoran Art Gallery, while her china painting was exquisite. Orline Walton was a native of Aberdeen, Mississippi. During her childhood, her father moved with his family to Bastrop, Texas. She was married to Hon. Joseph D. Sayers when he was Lieutenant-Governor of the State, and the first years of her married life were spent at Austin. She was a member of the Methodist church and interested in its benevolent and educational work.[3]

Sayers entered political service in 1873, when he became a state senator in the 13th Texas Legislature. In his term, he helped reverse most of the legislation that had been passed under the Radical Republicans.[2] After his term ended in 1875, Sayers spent three years as chairman of the Texas State Democratic Executive Committee. He presided over the state Democratic convention in both 1876 and 1878.[2] At the 1878 convention he was nominated to be Lieutenant Governor and later won the election. Sayers and Governor Oran Roberts differed on one key point; Sayers believed that public lands should be saved for homesteaders and schools, not sold cheaply to speculators, as Roberts advocated.[2]

In 1884, Sayers was elected to U.S. Congress, where he served until 1898. That year, he ran for governor, winning the election and taking office in early 1899. During his term in office, labor unions were exempted from antitrust laws, and blacklists were outlawed. His term saw increased spending on education, prisons, and social service institutions and outlawed railroad rebates.[2] He also spearheaded legislation that authorized the creation of school districts.[4]

Sayers's term was notable for the number of disasters that the state faced. The Brazos River flooded in 1899, and the following year the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 caused great devastation. Other parts of the state suffered from a severe drought, and boll weevils caused widespread cotton destruction. Millions of dollars in assistance came to the state, and Sayers administered the distribution of the funds "honestly and fairly."[4]

After leaving office in 1903, Sayers focused mainly on his law practice. He also took the time, however, to serve on the Board of Regents for the University of Texas System as well as on the Industrial Accident Board, the State Board of Legal Advisors, and the pardon board.[4]